Mark Foote
Post title: Comment on Gudo Nishijima Video (Carapeto)
(Feb 2 2012 at 11:37 AM)

I was struck by Gudo's description of an awareness of the back of the neck and head, and a stretch that is engaged when the chin comes down and in. The stretch, Gudo said, is at the back of the head, and is critical to dropping mind and body. Am I remembering that right?

Now from my research into cranial-sacral osteopathic theory, the stretch he's referring to is not only from the extensors along the back of the spine and neck to the mandibular bones of the skull (behind the jaw), and thenc

Read More

comments: 0

Mark Foote
Post title: Visual Thinking
(Jan 24 2012 at 02:37 PM)

There are parallels to "visual thinking", attending to information coming to awareness before any discrimination of intent, in disciplines other than psychic healing. Dogen the Japanese Soto teacher emphasized "non-thinking" as the pivot of zazen, for instance (in Fukanzazengi).

I myself am coming to the conclusion that the ability to sit zazen depends on the hypnogogic state (between waking and sleeping, as it were). My effort in "waking up and falling asleep", as I'm referring to the in

Read More

comments: 0

Mark Foote
Post title: Sitting the lotus- from the full lotus thread on Tao Bums
(Jan 23 2012 at 09:46 PM)

On sitting the lotus, here are some instructions I find very useful, every day almost:

"An empty hand grasps the hoe handle
Walking along, I ride the ox
The ox crosses the wooden bridge
The bridge is flowing, the water is still."

("Zen's Chinese Heritage", Andy Ferguson, pg 2, copyright 2002 Andrew Ferguson)

"So he abides fully conscious of what is behind and what is in front.
As (he is conscious of what is) in front, so behind: as behind, so in front;
as below, so above: as abo

Read More

comments: 0